Monday, December 23, 2002

Ruben Bolling's "lucky duck" cartoon Oooh, those lucky duckies Don't miss this week's Ruben Bolling comic, nicely flaying the Wall Street Journal "Tax the Poor" meme. [Scott Rosenberg's Links & Comment] 11:48:50 PM     can public comment tame the DMCA? what hope for the DMCRA? Critics Weigh In on Copyright Act. The U.S. Copyright Office asked for public comment on the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, and it got it. Critics worry about everything from losing great art to restricting blind people's access to information. By Joanna Glasner. [Wired News] [A blog doesn't need a clever name] 11:29:19 PM     information rights are the rights of information consumers SJ Mercury: Consumers' rights given little respect. Dan Gillmor. Yet something akin to this practice is already in existence, and growing. In the world of electronic devices, digital entertainment and software, customers are routinely subjected to restrictions that forbid modification of products they've already purchased. [Tomalak's Realm] 11:22:01 PM     cable modem providers would like to turn your web viewing into a commodity to sell Battle for the Internet [kfsource] It's a Monday & I shouldn't be making many comments, but this is just too scary ... Here are some quotes from the Law.com article. It makes me glad I use DSL - although those benefits might go away if the playing field is "levelled" the wrong way. The primary concern is that broadband providers could interfere with where their customers go on the Web. Cable providers have almost omniscient control over the Web surfing of their customers. They can track every mouse click, and if they so desire, slow or block access to specific Web sites. It's not hard for some to envision scenarios where this power could be abused. For example, speculates Jay Stanley, communications coordinator for the ACLU's Technology and Liberty Program, ISPs could easily "speed delivery for affiliated partners ... but make certain competitors' sites load at a snail's pace." ... 11:17:49 PM

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